


At the Precipice

by ZScalantian



Category: Subarashiki Kono Sekai | The World Ends With You
Genre: Asshole deity reluctantly indulging his sentimental side, Between the last scene and the epilogue (Twewy), Gen, Missing Scene
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-12-18
Updated: 2020-12-18
Packaged: 2021-03-10 22:08:26
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,147
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28154379
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ZScalantian/pseuds/ZScalantian
Summary: At the end of the world, Shiki and Beat try frantically to wrap up some loose ends.
Relationships: Bito "Beat" Daisukenojo & Bito "Rhyme" Raimu & Kiryu "Joshua" Yoshiya & Misaki Shiki & Sakuraba Neku
Comments: 3
Kudos: 16
Collections: The World Exchanges With You 2020





	At the Precipice

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lostboywriting](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lostboywriting/gifts).



The paralysis snaps off. Shiki stumbles forward, screaming Neku’s name. He’s collapsed forward, laying facedown, and she falls to her knees beside him. The bullet went right through him, and there’s blood on the concrete floor and blood on his shirt.

She pulls off her hoodie, balls it up and presses it against the gushing wound. _What the fuck,_ she thinks hysterically, over and over again. _What the fuck, what the fuck_. Beat is yelling - his roaring voice echoes in the cavernous space, but the sound doesn’t resolve into words she can understand. Probably he’s saying _what the fuck_ too.

_Cure_ , she thinks, and scrabbles one-handed for a healing pin. The pockets of Neku’s baggy shorts sag overloaded with pins. They fall through her fingers like a mockery of treasure, spilling onto the bloody floor. When’d he get all these? She doesn’t recognize them.

At last, Cure Drink. Orange soda can on round green field. She can’t use it as efficiently as Neku, but it should work -

A hand lands on her shoulder. She shrieks and about leaps out of her skin. It’s Mr. Hanekoma. He looks exhausted, but he smiles at her. “Hey, sister.”

“Mr. H!” Relief floods her. Mr. Hanekoma saved her before, and he saved Beat - he’ll save Neku now. But he pulls up on her shoulder, drawing her to her feet, away from Neku. She twists, tries to get away.

“Don’t worry,” he says. “It’s all good. It’s all taken care of, or about to be.” He jerks his head. “Look.”

She balls her bloody hand into fists and does. Beat’s got Joshua, the Composer - Shiki feels like she read the first three chapters of a novel then skipped to the end, she’s missing so much context, this all feels like a bad dream - Beat’s got him by the shirt collar, his feet barely touching the floor. Beat’s shouting in his face, but the boy’s smug smile doesn’t wobble.

He holds up a hand, flicks it in a flourishing gesture like a stage magician. Now there’s a pin in his fingers. It’s black and grey, but she can’t tell what it is. Beat pales, then snarls, “Gimme dat-” He drops Joshua, grabbing for it.

“Now hold on,” Joshua says, gliding effortlessly out of the way. He’s still smiling, and Shiki decides she kind of hates that smile. Not kind of. Definitely. She doesn’t know what that pin is, but…

“Give it to him!” she shouts, her throat tearing. “And fix Neku!”

Mr. H squeezes her shoulder gently. “Don’t worry,” he says again. “Josh’s good. You just gotta put up with some theatrics first.”

“ _Theatr-_ ” The word chokes her. She smells copper, a mixture of her tears and Neku’s blood. This isn’t drama club, this is their real lives!

“But it’s not,” Josh says, and he’s suddenly standing just beside Neku’s prone form, directly across from her. “You aren’t alive, you know that. For now, you exist outside reality. Especially here.” He spreads his arms wide, encompassing the whole of the vault they’re in, then turns his hand to hold up the pin, admiring it. “That’s some really fine work, Sanae.”

There’s a wry tone to Mr. Hanekoma’s voice. “Thanks. You want me to -”

“No, no, I’ve got it.”

Beat arrives again, fist driving down toward Joshua like the wrath of God. “She ain’t yours!” Somehow, Shiki doesn’t quite see how, Beat’s punch misses and he goes stumbling past Josh.

The Composer’s quite calm. “Well, ‘she’s’ not anybody’s but her own. She did lose the game, but I suppose there were enough extenuating circumstances that…” He flicks his hand and the pin vanishes.

A Noise appears, small, pink, and winged. Shiki tenses, thinking he’s going to sic it on Beat, and Mr. Mew stands up straight, ready for combat. Then static fuzzes all over the Noise. Shiki squints but can’t keep it in focus, and then it’s gone and Rhyme is standing there, blinking.

“Rhyme!”

“ _Rhyme!!_ ” Beat scoops her up, squeezing her.

She pounds his shoulder. “Beat! Too tight!”

He laughs and loosens his hold, but doesn’t let go, so Rhyme’s yellow and black sneakers dangle off the floor. Shiki’s not sure how and why Rhyme is back, but she’s not going to look this gift horse in the mouth. There’s still the other problem, too. “Neku!” she snaps. “Fix him!”

Joshua ignores her. He addresses Rhyme. “Raimu Bito, you willfully flung yourself into a trap and were erased. You lost the Game, and therefore your entry fee will not be returned to you.”

Rhyme’s not looking at him, but down at Neku instead, shocked horror on her face. “Are we gonna take care of him or what?”

Josh looks faintly ruffled. Shiki thinks he wants his dramatic pronouncements to have more effect. He continues on to Beat. “Daisukenojo Bito -” he pauses as though waiting for a reaction, and Beat leaps into the gap.

“Enough, man! I’m super grateful to fuckin’ finally have Rhyme back, but what’re you gonna do ‘bout Neku?”

“ _Daisukenojo_ Bito, you’ve won the Game. You will be restored to life, and your entry fee retu-”

Shiki butts in. “Restored to life? So you’re not going to destroy Shibuya? Or are you putting us down somewhere else?”

He flickers a glance her way, and he’s definitely getting irritated. From what Mr. H said, Shiki had got the impression of the Composer as a deific figure, so maybe it’s not the wisest idea to piss him off, but she doesn’t particularly care right now. He put them through hell, so this littlest payback is more than deserved, and more than that, these are important questions! Would it kill him to answer them?!

Mr. Hanekoma laughs, patting Shiki on the back. “Attagirl. He deserves this, and worse.”

“Fine,” Josh says, playing with a lock of his hair like he doesn’t care, pulling his composure back into place. “We’ll skip the speeches.” White light suddenly spills into the room, warm and sparkling. Shiki’s breath catches. She remembers this…

“You’re all going back. Shibuya will still be there.” The light’s getting brighter, making it hard to see. She starts to feel weightless. The Composer’s voice gets fainter. “You’ll remember the Game for a while, I can’t say how long.” Shiki squints against the glare. Are… Are Neku’s eyes opening…?

Yes, Neku’s waking up. She switches her gaze to Joshua and Mr. Hanekoma. Mr. H is rubbing the back of his neck, like a workman soothing his sore muscles after a long day of labor. Josh is blurring in the white light, impossible to keep in focus, but she thinks he’s smiling.

“I can say, I devoutly hope I never run into any of you ever again.”

She wants to say that the feeling’s mutual, but her mind is filled up by light and an all-encompassing empathy, and it’s not true. She tries to say something.

**Author's Note:**

> Happy holidays, lostboywriting!


End file.
